2019 Mazars Global Water Risk Survey – Chile

Due to its geography, Chile is considered a privileged country in terms of its water resources. According to data from the Public Works Ministry, the country has 101 hydrographic basins, with its superficial and underground waters distributed around 756.102 km2 of land. Among them, we find 1.251 rivers and 12.784 water bodies (lakes and lagoons). Adittionally, Chile has 24.114 glaciers. Meanwhile, the average precipitation in the country is 1.525 mm/year.

However, because of climate change, drought has become a severe problem in different parts of the country, which is generating an impact on the population and the business world. Data compiled by Fundación Chile reveal that roughly 76% of the Chilean surface is being affected by drought, desertification and degraded soil, which makes Chile one of the economies with the highest water risk by 2025, according to Radiografía del Agua, Brecha y Riesgo Hídrico en Chile, 2018.

Given this scenario and its effects on the population, we decided to assess the impact on business by surveying more than 265 C-level, or equivalent, executives in Chile across more than 20 sectors. The survey shows some interesting findings about the awareness of businesses in Chile of the imminent water risk and its impact, as well as key measure and tools to anticipate or mitigate this risk.